- [Narrator] Being the
curious creatures that we are, human beings are constantly
discovering amazing new things. But sometimes, those
discoveries are so strange, they raise more questions than answers. From truly bizarre artifacts
that fell from the heavens, to ancient anomalies found underground, here are some of the strangest
objects recently discovered. (upbeat music) River Cubes. In May 2020, Englishman
Will Read was sifting through sediment for precious metals in a shallow river in Coventry, England, when he happened upon
something truly unexpected. Initially thinking he'd just
picked up some riverbed debris, Will and his two sons quickly realized they'd scooped up something
much more intriguing. They'd actually uncovered
cubes made of lead, small enough to hold between
your thumb and forefinger, each bearing symbols and numbers intricately inscribed in a grid. They ended up finding
more than 60 of the cubes, alongside various coins with
holes punctured through them. Unable to figure out what
the cubes' purpose were, Will turned to the internet
for an explanation, and soon found one. These types of cubes, it turned out, are used in traditional
Hindu prayer rituals. The inscriptions reference
certain astrological principles, and with the intention of
requesting spiritual help or guidance from a cosmic entity, are dropped in running water to maximize the alleged effects. But what were religious
cubes of this nature which are usually found in India doing in a river in England? And how long had they been there? Well, as the coins found
accompanying the cubes were minted in the 1980s, the cubes were likely deposited there sometime in past 40-ish years. As for who put them there, most likely, they were left by British Hindus, carrying out their ancestral
religious ceremonies in their newer home of the UK. Rivers like the Ganges are
hugely important spiritual places for practitioners of the Hindu faith, so it's likely that this
river in Coventry served as an ideal substitute. But whoever placed the coins
there, they certainly made for a more interesting riverbed discovery than the usual of old
boots and shopping carts! With intriguing discovery
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are waiting to be discovered in game right here. And speaking of objects
waiting to be discovered, let's check out some more
strange ones, shall we? Dragon stone. In September, 2020, this
drainage scaly looking object was found in a field in Arkansas after being shared to Facebook
requesting information about what it might be. The suggestions came flying
in ranging from aliens to fossilized dinosaur eggs, to petrified turtle shells,
and giant mushrooms. Some suggestions were more
plausible than others, but when an expert finally chimed in, most ideas were proven wrong. It turned out, the find was
actually something known as a dragon stone, which geologists refer to as a
septarian nodule of siderite. These rocks typically
form in muddy sediment, when soils dry out over thousands
of years forming cracks, which are then filled with
other minerals like calcite. Most of the time, they're
considerably smaller than the specimen uncovered in Arkansas, making this recent find
highly valuable to collectors. So, even if the finder was disappointed they hadn't uncovered the
remnants of an ancient dragon, at least they'd be able
to wipe their tears away with fistfuls of cash. Ancient Wolf. In 2019, a discovery was
made in Eastern Siberia that was equal parts
terrifying and fascinating. In the icy conditions, the exceptionally well-preserved remains of an ancient wolf were found,
belonging to a sub-species that went extinct tens of
thousands of years ago. This particular specimen is thought to be between 32,000 and 40,000 years
old, having been preserved by the permanently-frozen
conditions it was found in, which prevented it decaying. The wolf's fur, brain, snout, and fangs are all still intact, allowing researchers to determine its head to be around 5 inches longer than the modern grey wolves of today. This larger head and wider,
more robust jaw allowed the wolf to hunt large herbivores such as woolly mammoths back in its day. While it's unknown how the
wolf's head ended up detached from its body, it may have been separated by shifts in the permafrost that encased it over thousands of years. Alternatively, its head
may have been buried under snow, dirt, or ice
at the time of its death, while scavengers fed on the accessible, above-ground parts of its body. Either way, with jaws as
ferocious-looking as that, let's be grateful we don't have to worry about non-frozen versions
of these wolves anymore. Ancient iPhone. In our modern world, considering how often
they're in our hands, smartphones have almost become an extension of the human body. But, as surprising as it sounds, the people of our time aren't
the only ones from history who liked tablet-shaped objects
that could fit in your hand. In 2019, an artifact was discovered at an archeological site
in the Tuva Republic that looked remarkably like a smartphone. But in reality, the artifact which was buried more than 2,100 years ago with its apparent owner,
alongside coins and pottery was actually an oversized belt buckle. The holes at the narrower ends would've originally been
connected to the belt string, which has decayed away over time. The buckle is fashioned
out of the gemstone, jet, and is intricately decorated
with other precious stones, including turquoise, carnelian, and mother of pearl, fashioned into beads. Clothing accessories crafted
from jet were particularly rare in this geographical area at the time this person was buried, and were usually reserved
for male warriors. This being a female skeleton suggests she was of high regard
and reasonable wealth, not to mention being at the
peak of fashion for her time. She may just be a pile of bones now, but with her classy attire, I'd say she could still
kill it on a runway. Just don't let her near your phone, she might try and wear it. USB Seal. Sometimes, a discovery is strange not because of what the object
is, but where it's found. Case in point: in 2019,
someone's USB flash drive was discovered sticking out of
some frozen leopard seal poop by biologists in New Zealand. The research team were studying
the contents of the poop, which had been gathered from
a New Zealand beach and frozen because you know science when they found the thumb-drive inside. Amazingly, it still worked, and was found to contain
family pictures and videos, as well as photos of sea lions. Equal parts baffled and intrigued, the scientists launched
a search for the owner. In a mere matter of days,
the owner came forward! It turned out, the owner
was actually something of a seal enthusiast herself, and had been observing
leopard seals on a beach when she accidentally
dropped her USB drive. Somehow, it seems the seal
ended up eating the drive, perhaps intrigued by the smell. Alternatively, a sea-bird
might've picked the drive up out of curiosity before
being eaten by the seal. Either way, the USB drive
ultimately passed through the seal only to have its droppings
gathered by biologists, kicking this strange story into motion. Ring Fish. In 2019, a group of buddies
fishing on Lake Michigan snagged a fish with an unexpected
bonus a wedding Ring, secured around its tail
fin with a cable tie. Amazed by their discovery, the fishermen got in touch
with local news stations to try to figure out the story behind it. Had someone tried to marry a fish? Was this an elaborate game of if you can catch the
wedding ring, you can marry me? Well, no, but the real reason was perplexing in its own right. Less than a week after the discovery, a man came forward confessing he was behind the steel
head's unusual accessory. It turned out, after divorcing his
now-ex-wife a few years prior, he'd been wanting to get rid of the ring and move on with his life. One day, he was thinking about
how much she used to nag him about going fishing, when he decided upon the perfect
way to get rid of the ring. To symbolize the end of
those unpleasant times, and to celebrate his newfound freedom, he tied his ring to a fish and
set it free in Lake Michigan. A month and a half later, the fish along with the ring
just so happened to be caught, sparking the search for
its mysterious owner. While the men who caught the fish offered to return the ring, the divorced man made very
clear he didn't want it back. As far as he was concerned, that ring was nothing but a curse, and he claimed his life
had been endlessly better since he got rid of it. That said, I'm not sure the
fish was quite so thrilled to be caught up in all this. Unfortunately, though, the fish was unable to be reached to discuss
his views on the matter. Beached Behemoth. In December 2016, visitors to
Muriwai Beach in New Zealand were greeted by a very
large, very strange mystery. A huge object, covered in odd shells with long, leathery,
tongue-like appendages had washed up on the shore, and had begun emitting a horrible aroma, sparking wild theories
as to what it might be. Some locals jokingly suggested it might be an extra-large
walrus with dreadlocks, while others suggested it might be some sort of
alien incubation pod set free from the bottom of the sea. One person put forward the humorous idea that it might be an
oceanic Christmas tree, which was funnily enough the
closest answer to the truth. In reality, the mysterious
object turned out to be a large chunk of driftwood, which during its journey
through the waves, had become totally covered
in gooseneck barnacles. Those leathery dreadlocks covering the driftwood were the
stalks the barnacles use to attach themselves to materials. Interestingly, gooseneck
barnacles are eaten as a delicacy in Spain,
meaning, technically, a gourmet seafood platter had
been served up on the beach! However, the foul smell
forced any thoughts of tucking in out of mind. The pungent aroma was likely the product of the barnacles being
left to dry out, decay, and bake in the sun. As I'm sure you already know, seafood and long stints in warm, open air are a truly hellish mixture as
far as smells are concerned. So, this time, driftwood paella
remained firmly off the menu of the local restaurants. Witch Crafts. When a devastating
volcanic eruption struck the Roman city of Pompeii in 79 A.D. much of the city was covered
in a thick blanket of ash. While those living there
perished in the intolerable heat and suffocating volcanic particles, the ash did something peculiar
to the remains and belongings of people who lived there. It preserved them, creating an eerie snapshot
of life 2,000 years ago. In modern excavations beneath the ash, countless fascinating
discoveries have been made, like one particularly
magical find in August 2019. A treasure trove of items, found in a wooden box that
had largely decomposed save for the brass hinges, was
found in an excavated house, and are thought to have been
the possessions of a sorceress. These items included
buttons carved from bone, carved scarab beetles,
crystals, phallic amulets, tiny, carved dolls and even a few teeth, among various other artifacts. These strange objects are all presumed to have been used for rituals, with some of the items likely
being crafted into necklaces which would be worn in hopes of channeling their supposed effects. Some of the magical effects
sought by the owner are thought to have included
fortune-telling, seduction and bringing good luck. It seems the luck ritual may
have needed some tweaking, considering the fate of
the collection's owner, but at least her intriguing, colorful collection survived
the tragedy of Pompeii. Roman Dodecahedrons. Some strange discoveries are
more than just a one-time thing certain types of objects are found repeatedly throughout history, yet each new find reveals
surprisingly little about their purpose. This is exactly the
case with these things, known as Roman dodecahedrons. Their name comes from their 12 flat faces and the fact that they all
originate from the Roman era. With most of them dating
from between the second and the fourth century A.D. these strange hollow objects
feature strange spheres on their corners alongside circular holes
of varying diameters. They're usually made from copper alloy and are often found in Roman coin hoards, which suggests they were seen
as highly valuable items. But for what purpose? Well, this question
has remained unanswered since the first Roman dodecahedron
was discovered in 1739, right up to the most recent finds, which still regularly
occur at old Roman sites throughout Northern Europe. Some theorize that these
dodecahedrons were decorative items or candlestick holders, as some examples have been
found with wax inside. Other theories suggest their use may have been in measuring
the sizes of distant objects, detecting counterfeit
coins based on their size, or even telling people's fortunes. A more recent theory points
out the varying sizes of the holes on the dodecahedrons' faces, suggesting they may be
finger-and-thumb holes, around which gloves could be knitted. This lines up with the fact that most of these objects
have been discovered in the chillier, northern
regions of Europe. That said, theories for their usage are currently impossible to verify, as there's no reference to their purpose in any Roman
resources written, artistic, or otherwise that we have access to today. With no solid evidence from the time to support any of these theories, Roman dodecahedrons
remain a mystery for now. Airforce Beach Mystery, In 2018, a man visiting Airforce Beach in Evans Head, Australia
happened upon an object which can looked like some
sort of giant, alien kazoo. This eyebrow-raising object consisted of two pieces of 10ft-long plastic piping, wrapped together in black plastic, all bundled up in fishing net. At one end, there was a plastic dome, seemingly housing some electrical parts, though these didn't appear
to be wired up to anything inside the plastic tubing. The only clue as to the item's origins or purpose was the word
Falcon written on the dome. This led some to suggest it may have belonged
to Falcon Oil Company, based further south down
the coastline in Sydney. If it did, though, the company
still hasn't come forward with an explanation to this day. Others, meanwhile, suggested the object might be a floating beacon
used for long-line fishing, perhaps carrying a tracker of some kind, that somehow got loose
from the rest of the net. Whatever it is, more than two years on, no official conclusion has been reached. So, what do you think it could be? Is my alien kazoo suggestion
close to the mark? Let me know in the comment
section down below. The Volgograd Discs. Some discoveries people make are either completely ground-breaking,
or pretty mundane, depending on who you ask. For the members of the Russian
mystery investigation group Kosmopoisk, finding this large, stone disc on an expedition near Volgograd, Russia, was an extraordinary discovery. The 13ft-wide disc was reported to be one of several in the area, and to the group that uncovered them, its disc shape was of no small importance. According to the group,
the shape of the stone, alongside the fact that it
reportedly contained tungsten a metal used in military
projectiles and aircrafts was evidence of extra-terrestrial origin. That's right, these explorers who happen to be UFO
enthusiasts declared these discs to be ancient alien spacecraft or drones. According to the group, the reason they no longer
look quite as one might expect for a flying saucer, is that they crash-landed
there millions of years ago, and their metal has since degraded. Now, for most people, this conclusion might seem a bit of a leap and I personally agree. After all, it's not that uncommon for rocks of this shape
to appear in nature, as compact masses known as concretions. These form when minerals fill the spaces between larger bodies of
rock over long periods. These concretions end up being harder than the surrounding rock or soil, and if this surrounding
strata erodes or falls away, the concretion inside is revealed. Concretions have been seen as a curiosity for hundreds of years, so the Kosmopoisk group's otherworldly conclusions are nothing new. What's more, the team
provided no solid evidence that these rocks contained
tungsten, and even if they did, that wouldn't be definitive
evidence of extra-terrestrials. Though it's rare, tungsten
does occur naturally in ore, usually mixed with other compounds. So, while these types of rocks are undoubtedly fascinating curiosities, concluding them to be of alien origin is a big enough stretch to
reach from Earth to Mars. Space Balls. While unfounded claims
of strange objects being from outer space are
relatively commonplace, only very rarely are these
claims proven to be true. But incidents of puzzling objects falling from the heavens actually have happened on a number of occasions in recent years. In two separate incidents,
once in Australia in 2008, and again in Spain in 2015, two almost-identical,
spherical objects fell from space into farmers' fields. Despite occurring seven years apart, the objects had remarkably
similar appearances, being tightly-wound balls
of frayed, twisted metal. With their spiralling design,
it certainly didn't seem that these were
naturally-occurring meteorites; so what were they? Well, after authorities
stepped in to investigate, it was found that both of
these objects were pieces of manmade space debris that'd found their way back to Earth. They're believed to be
parts of fuel modules used and released after a communications
satellite was launched from Florida back in 1998. They seemingly drifted in
Earth's orbit for years before eventually being
pulled back home by gravity to befuddle rural agricultural
workers around the world. While the finds were
certainly fascinating, there was an element of concern too. Considering their size, the
materials they're made from, and the speed with which
they would've hit the ground, had one of them hit somebody well, let's just say it
wouldn't have been pretty. So, keep watching the skies if not for UFOs, then for your own safety! Mystery Of The Monolith. In November 2020, a shiny,
metal monolith appeared in the middle of a desert in Utah. The prism-shaped protrusion was spotted by state wildlife officials who were counting
bighorn sheep in the area in an overhead helicopter. The discovery instantly
caused a stir online, with people drawing links to the monolith that appears in Stanley
Kubrick's 1968 movie, 2001 "A Space Odyssey." While the monolith in the movie ushers in the next stage in human evolution, that didn't seem to be the
case for the one in Utah, as a photographer snapped shots of it being disassembled days later. It turned out to be little
more than some plywood and metal sheets dug into the ground, and after it was retrieved, all that remained was its
base and a pile of rocks. But that wasn't the end of the story. Toward the end of November,
another metal monolith of remarkably similar
appearance was discovered, this time in Romania. Less than a week after that, another monolith of the same kind appeared atop Pine Mountain in California. With each of the monoliths bearing a remarkably similar appearance, it seemed that they were
unquestionably linked. But who was responsible, what
the intended message was, and whether it would turn
out to be a publicity stunt, has yet to be confirmed. That said, rumors have emerged that the highly-publicized
monoliths may be a novel attempt to publicize progressive-metal band Tesseract's latest album, which features similar
monoliths on the cover. As of yet, though, the
answer remains unconfirmed. Digging For Shells. While fishing along the banks of a creek in Buenos
Aires, Argentina in 2019, one man stumbled upon something that definitely wasn't a fish. Noticing an unusual rock
along the muddy bank, he went to clear the
dirt away to pull it out, but soon realized it was much larger than he'd initially expected, and it had a peculiar, cobbled texture. It soon became clear this
wasn't any ordinary rock. (laughs) And when experts were called
in to excavate the object, it was found to be a remarkably
well-preserved fossil. To be precise, this was the
fossilized shell of a glyptodon, an ancient, giant relative
of armadillos with a huge, bone-plate shell and club-like tail that went extinct around 10,000 years ago. Finding these specimens
so well-preserved is rare, although specimens of
this kind have been found in this part of Argentina with increasing regularity
in recent years. An even more impressive discovery in the area was made in 2020, when a farmer grazing his
cows initially discovered two of these fossilized creatures. Amazingly, the ensuing
excavation ended up uncovering a group of four! These recent discoveries
followed in the wake of an initial discovery made in 2015 near the Argentine city
of Carlos Spegazzini, not far from Buenos Aires. At first assumed to be a dinosaur egg, this glyptodon specimen was
found in the bank of a stream by a man walking on his farm. Modern-day Buenos Aires was
clearly a hotspot for glyptodons before they were wiped out, and hopefully, more big-shell
discoveries like these will follow in the future. They may cause a similar
amount of confusion at first, but as we've seen, many of the best discoveries
are also the strangest. What's the weirdest thing
that's been discovered by you, or people in your area? Let me know in the comments section below. Thanks for watching!
